Dana White says Uriah Hall was not showboating, he just "mentally broke" during his TUF 17 Finale defeat to Kelvin Gastelum on Saturday.

Hall was one of the heaviest favourites in TUF Finale history, having delivered a series of brutal knockouts during his run to the final.

President White had commented prior to Saturday's clash that he had never witnessed a TUF finalist already being matched with the champion of the division, as Hall had been with middleweight king Anderson Silva.

However, when Hall stepped inside the Octagon he appeared to fight in an arrogant manner, dropping his hands with regularity and voluntarily backing against the cage. It was suggested to White that the hype had gone to Hall's head, but the president insisted it wasn't a case of over-confidence.

"I didn't think he showboated. I think he mentally broke," White said. "I think you saw what he had this season.

"But when you find out what a guy really has is when he's under pressure. When you're under pressure, you find out who the Anderson Silvas and the Georges St-Pierres are, those type of guys."

This was the first time a bulk of the UFC community will have seen Hall fight in front of a major audience, with his previous TUF fights taking place in a controlled TV environment. Hall confessed it all became too much.

"A big part of it is, it's kind of hard," Hall said. "Because I trained with the guy and I like him. It was kind of like that emotional side I was trying to get rid of. So it was kind of weird, just going into the ring I was like, 'Oh, sh*t. Here we go again.'

"That side kind of got the best of me, but there's no excuse. Kelvin's a great guy. He's a tough kid. I think he's going to go really far in this sport and I'm happy for him."